A Future Thanksgiving
by MountAnson
Summary: Thanksgiving in the near future for Chuck and Sarah. Very short, slice of life.


**I know it is late in the day for a Thanksgiving story, but couldn't help myself, so here is a very short Bartowski Thanksgiving. I hardly re-read this, so forgive the errors.**

"Mommy, can I sit with you now? Clara and Maya have their Barbies on the table and they're loud." Landon Bartowski had already pulled himself up onto Sarah's lap by the time he finished his question, confident that he would not be denied.

"Are you tired, baby boy?" Sarah stroked her 4 year old son's blond curls back across his forehead as he nestled into her embrace. "Eat too much like your father?"

Landon didn't answer and simply closed his eyes, seemingly oblivious to the scattered talking and punctuated laughter of the crowded Bartowksi dining and living room area of their house. Things were winding down now as the extended family fell into a post-meal stupor and Sarah sat alone at the Thanksgiving dining table quietly sipping her coffee. Casey had moved from the table to the couch to join his daughter Alex, Sarah's "sister" Molly, and Chuck's mother Mary who were all watching the ending of the football game on TV. Sarah's mother Emma was sitting at the "kids" table watching her granddaughter Maya playing Barbie with her cousin Clara. Ellie was putting her newborn daughter Samantha to sleep in the back bedroom. Morgan, Devin and Chuck had cleared the table and deposited the dirty dishware to the kitchen, doing their part after the ladies of the family assisted Chef Ellie in the preparation of the meal. Morgan and Devin's attention immediately went to the football game as they returned to the living room, Devin letting out a frustrated groan as he watched Romo throw another ill-advised pass in desperation that landed directly into the hands of the other team as he was taken to the ground by the Redskin's lineman.

"Just tuck the ball and go to the ground, Romo!" Devin said. "You're just making things worse."

Casey smirked. "Your boy can't help himself, Devin. Looks like my DC men are going to take this one. Again."

Chuck laughed and dropped himself, along with his second piece of pumpkin pie, next to Sarah at the table. "I'm so glad I don't care about football."

Sarah raised her eyebrows. "Because it leaves you with more time to eat on Thanksgiving?"

"You got it babe!" Chuck cut into the piece of pie in front of him with gusto and made a show of taking a big bite. After he swallowed it down, he clarified. "No, actually I'm glad I don't care about football because I don't want to be frustrated on Thanksgiving. I just want to eat and be with my family."

"So really you are confirming that I'm right, at least in part, that your reasoning involves eating." Sarah grinned at Chuck who replied with a quirk of an eyebrow, a quick consideration and finally a nod of agreement.

"Yeah, I guess I did kind of agree with you." Chuck smiled and leaned in to give Sarah a soft kiss on her lips. "But the spending time with my family is the bigger reason of the two." Chuck put his fork down and reached to rub his son's arm. "This one seems to be done with Thanksgiving."

Landon snuggled closer to his mother at his father's touch.

"Yeah, he lasted longer than I thought. Plus he was a bit frustrated with the Barbie play I think."

Chuck looked over to his niece and daughter playacting with their Barbies. "Reminds me of when Ellie would force me to play. She was always Barbie and Ken. She didn't care about genders, I had to be Skipper or, if I was lucky, Ken's friend Todd. She even always told me exactly what to say."

"Well, lucky for Maya, her cousin seems to play nicer. They both get to be Barbie, I think." Sarah's face had a touch of melancholy as thoughts of her own childhood passed through her mind. The Thanksgiving she spent in a run-down motel with her father as she listened to him arguing on the phone with her mother and the one she spent with her grandmother in Wisconsin when they both waited in vain for her father to show up as promised. She would have loved a cousin or a sibling. She didn't get to spend too many holidays, that she could remember at least, with her mother either. A smile crept on her face though, as she watched her mom now in the corner with the girls, beaming as she played with her granddaughter. She reached for Chuck's shoulder and turned him back towards her. "I'm so glad that Maya has her grandmother and her cousin to play with. I'm so glad we have this family." Chuck grasped her hand and held it tightly to his chest as he looked into her eyes.

"It's everything, Sarah. It means everything." Chuck kissed her again, this time lingering on her lips as his forehead touched hers. Unbeknownst to his parents, Landon was now awake and silently watching them. "I love you Sarah and I love our family." He kissed her again and her free hand moved up to cup his face.

"Pass interference! You have got to be kidding me! This is a football game, not a freaking ballet!" Casey's shout and subsequent groan of frustration jerked Chuck and Sarah out of their moment.

"I even love Casey." Chuck laughed as he pulled back from his wife.

Landon decided to make his presence known again. "I love Uncle Casey too, Daddy! He's like my very own big soft bear!" With that, Landon squiggled down his mother's body back to the ground and ran full force to his very own bear, jumping into Casey's arms without warning. Casey was always on alert though and took him onto his lap without comment, quickly transferring his unlit cigar to his other hand.

"Which team do we want to win?" asked Landon.

"Redskins, Landon, the team with the white shirts." Casey nodded to the TV.

Devin turned towards his nephew with a frown. "Nope, Landon, don't listen to him, listen to your uncle. The Cowboys are America's team. The ones in blue with the star on their helmets. That's who you root for."

Casey scowled. "Huh, America's team my a-," Casey cut himself off before he said the offending word and turned to look at the young boy in his arms. "The Cowboys are not America's team, Bartowski. The Washington Redskin's home is in our nation's capital. I think that makes them America's team."

Chuck and Sarah turned their attention back to each other. "I guess our guy's got his second wind, huh, Chuck? Hope his very own big soft bear can handle him."

Chuck smiled. "I get the big bear part, but I wouldn't necessarily classify Casey as soft."

Sarah looked at Casey again sitting with her son on his lap and then back to Chuck. "I can't believe I'm saying it, but I think he means Casey's heart, Chuck. It took us a lot longer to figure out than the kids, but Casey has a soft heart. He just revealed it immediately to Maya and Landon, you know?"

Chuck nodded in agreement, surveying the scene has he watched Ellie enter back into the living room and take up residence on the floor sitting between Devin's legs.

He turned back to his plate and cut another bite off his pie, making sure to get the dollop of whipped cream on his fork as well and then offered up the treat to Sarah's lips. She smiled and took it into her mouth.

Chuck reached for a bit of whipped cream that still edged his wife's lip. "This has been a perfect day. Happy Thanksgiving, Sarah."

"Happy Thanksgiving, Chuck. I love you." Sarah gave him another kiss to his lips. "And thank you for giving me your whipped cream."

"Anything for you, babe. Anything for you."

**I know its short and has no story. Just a slice of life. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and if you aren't American, hope you had a great Thursday!**


End file.
